Friday, November 12, 2010

A Murder Recount

'On that day, ten other people and I went to Hoimoly Town to have our dinner. By the time we finished eating and chatting, it was already 12 midnight. There were no hotels near the restaurant, only a very very huge and old house. We were forced to stay in that creepy house.'

'So, was that house inhabited?'

'I was knocking on the door for five minutes, but no one answered. We thought there was no one in the house and the door wasn't locked. As we open the door , there were crickets chirping and the house was full of cobweb and dust. There were at least fifteen bedrooms in the house. So, each of us took one room.'

'Weren't you scared?'

'We were too tired to bother about that. I was pretty lucky that my room was not that dirty. I put down my bag and lay down on the bed. Although I was very tired but I couldn't sleep. The wind was howling outside and the rain started splashing against the window. As I looked out the window, I saw a shadow of a man running towards the library. I had an extremely strange feeling that something bad was going to happen. Suddenly, I heard a scream from the library.'

'Was it a scream of a man or a woman?'

'It was a scream of a terrified woman. I went to my friends' room adjacent to mine to wake them up. But they were all sleeping like a dead people. So I decided to investigate on my own. I went back to my room, took a torch light out of my bag and cautiously walked towards the library.'

'Was the light on?'

'Yes. But the lamp kept blinking. I took my torch light in case the light went off.'

'Okay. Please continue.'

'The library door was half open. The library was quite dark and full of book shelves. As I pushed the door open and went in, I heard some footsteps running towards the other door. There are two doors in the library you see. I ran towards the other door to see who it was. But I stopped when I saw a dead body lying on the floor next to the bookshelf.'

'So did you see who it was?'

'No. I walked slowly and carefully towards the other door this time. When I was about to open the door a man knocked me on the head and I was unconscious. By the time I was awake, I was right beside the dead body with a pool of blood. The knife was still on the dead body's chest.'

'Was the man still there?'

'No, he was already gone when I was awake.'

'Okay.'

Adeline Fong
14 years old
SMK Damansara Jaya
Nov 2010

Friday, January 8, 2010

My Pet

On my last birthday, I celebrated my birthday at the zoo. I saw a tiger cub in the cage. It was so cute. I wanted to get one home but my parents didn’t allow me. I whined all the way home and got my dad really angry. So, he grounded me in my room.
I got on the internet to orer a tiger cub. I went to my father’s wallet to get a credit card to pay for my tiger cub.

The next day, the tiger arrived in a brown package. I took the tiger into the house and into my room. I slammed the door and opened the package. I thought and thought for a name, and finally I named it Tigger.

Later, I fed it with my favourite Sprite and it sneezed. The drink splatted all over my face. Then I realized that it doesn’t drink Sprite. I fed it again with some egg. Suddenly, Tiger fainted and did not move at all. I shouted to my parents for help. My parents’ exclaimed, “What tiger?”

I answered, “My tiger cub!”

My parents ran into my room and brought Tigger to the vet.
The vet gave me a long lecture about keeping an endangered animal. My father grounded me again for a week and unplugged the internet connection. After this lesson, I felt very sorry for Tigger but I will miss him.

Ng Zi Ling
10 years old
March 09
SRJK Yuk Chai

An Unexpected Visitor

Someone rang the door bell as Jimmy was about to catch his afternoon nap. With a grunt, he crawled up from the couch and dragged his legs reluctantly towards the door. He cursed under his breath as the wooden door did not budge even though he yanked at it a few times. Only after a minute of twisting and tugging at the door knob, Jimmy managed to open the stubborn door with an objecting creek. That was when he saw a figure of a man, tall and lean, standing on the front porch.
“Good afternoon, may I spea to Jimmy? Jimmy Mc Coy?” the man asked.
“Well, I am Jimmy. Who are you and what do you want?” said Jimmy as he scrutinized the face of the stranger against the glaring sunlight. He felt annoyed. Missing his Sunday naps always put him in a temper. Jimmy does not get many visitors, just an occasional visit from a long distant relative or salesmen which he will drive them off with a fit. With this man, there was something familiar about his face that jimmy could not recall. Even the voice was familiar, it sounded like someone Jimmy had known from the past, just that he had a deeper voice with a tinge of formality.
“Jim, it’s me, Max. Don’t you remember your old pal back in the orphanage?” The man showed his teeth with a big smile on his face.
“Max! It’s you! I can’t believe this. Where on earth have you been?” said Jimmy after recognizing the old familiar cheeky grin he missed during his childhood back at the orphanage. They both got into a tight friendly hug. The feeling was like reconciling with a long lost brother. With his irritation fom missing the afternoon nap long gone, Jimmy felt delighted. He would sacrifice every afternoon nap just to rattle on about the good old days, tracing back every childhood memory that he had shared with Max back then. Those memories were priceless to him. It was something he would carry to his grave.
Jimmy was older than Max. Well, not literally as Max was in the Orphanage before Jimmy. They practically grew up together. They shared the same room, the same bed, and almost anything you can think of. Back then, Jimmy’s tiny feeble figure made him a prey for all kinds of bullies, not until Max stood up for him and they were inseparable ever since. Jimmy’s adoption split their friendship and brotherhood. Jimmy remembered how hard he tried to beg for his parents to adopt Max, and how Max’s envious eyes stared into him as he left the Orphanage. He had not heard of Max ever since.
Seeing Max before his eyes was unbelievable. He had visited the Orphanage after graduation but was told that Max had taken off. It has been his wish to track Max down, to reconcile with his long lost pal. And tell him how much he had longed for his friend’s companionship. He had even hired an investigator and glanced around every street as he drove to work, with a feeble hope that Max would miraculously appear. Now, with Max seated in front of him, he was awestruck. He was speechless. All he could do was study his friend with curious eyes, along with hundreds and thousands of questions forming in his head.
Max’s features had changed from the picture Jimmy had in his head except his smile. There were scars on his face, one on the forehead and a small one on his chin. Jimmy recognized the mole on his left cheek. Jimmy knew it was the Max he had long known. Max was thin, almost gaunt. His skeletal body was clearly visible under his white T-shirt. He looked pale and frail, and Jimmy noticed how Max tried to hide his shaky hands. Occasionally, Max seemed to be distracted when they were talking about the old days. His eyes darted around, as if looking for something, and jimmy was worried. He thought of every possible reasons for Max’s unusual behaviour. He even thought of asking him, but he shrug it off as soon as Max was back in the conversation.
Jimmy threw all the accumulated questions he had in mind for years to Max that whole afternoon. He had learned that Max had left the Orphanage to get a job, though he never mentioned what job it was when Jimmy asked further. Max had travelled around the States for his job, which explains why Jimmy has not been able to contact him throughout the years. Max was back in town and heard the news of Jimmy finding him in the Orphanage. He came as soon as he could.
That evening was an unforgettable one for Jimmy and Max. They could feel the joy they used to share back when they were kids. Jimmy felt his tears welled up when they talked about the late Sister Maria and the other kids from the Orphanage. They reminiscent the ups and downs they went through together and how bold and brace they were every time they had sneaked off into the haunted forest back in the orphanage and had come back feeling all creeped up. It seemed like a journey back into time that evening until Max decided it was time to leave.
“Jim, I won’t be back for awhile after this,” as all he said after a long pause.
“Promise me you will visit again. You are always welcomed.”
“Well, that depends. I need to go for a vacation, you know, get away from my job for awhile. I do not know when I will or will not be coming back. Well, it is the greatest day of my life, meeting you again, Jim. I really hope we get to meet again in the future,” said Max as he turned into the silent street.
It was not long after Max left when someone came knocking at the door again. As Jimmy was expecting to see Max’s cheeky grin again, he found himself facing two men in black suits.
“Sir, we are FBIs. Have you seen this man? His name is Max Junior and he was last reported to be seen on this street,” one of the men explained while the other handed out a picture which made Jimmy speechless in disbelief.
Across the street, Jimmy saw Max’s face turned into a solemn smile and disappeared into the night.

Pua Yu Min
17 years old
2009
SMK Damansara Jaya

Sunday, October 11, 2009

“If only I could turn back the clock”

I am glad that I have killed my wife. Yes, I admit. I have killed Leila, that unscrupulous woman. She gave me a whole lot of hell throughout her life. Finally, everything is solved that fateful day. I can say that it has been the happiest day of my life.

It was during the eight o’clock news that I finally made my decision. It was like an instinct, something she said triggered the anger inside me and there it happened. Just like that, I used my bare hands and strangled her with all my mighty strength. I should have used that wire cord of that Tiffany lamp. That would be the justification for what she had done. However, the feel of her neck snapping within my curling fingers as she struggled and struggled helplessly was something that I will never forget. It was something I enjoyed.

The plan of killing my wife had been building since our wedding. Maybe it started on the first night, when we fought in the suite and she went to the desk for a separate room. Our lives have not been like the other ‘happily ever after’ couples. You might be curious about why I have chosen her as my soul mate and said ‘I do’ down the aisle. I was foolish and love is blind, but only until the day I got married. I tried to stay away from her ever since, out of home, working like a bull, coming home late at night. That helped me a little to procrastinate my plans of getting rid of her. This went on for a few years until I was forced to an early retirement, replaced by someone with higher qualifications. I had no choice but to stay at home. My life became a nightmare.

That morning, like her usual routine, she sat in front of the television, watching her eight o’clock news, with her usual cold, half drunk coffee on the side table by her armchair. While I was reading my newspaper, she announced to me matter-of-factly that she has spent all my $100,000 savings to buy a Tiffany lamp. She claimed that the lamp was covered with Swarovski crystal stones from Africa and it even comes with a certificate. She thought it was a good investment for herself since I no longer have a job to support her. My heart blazed with rage. After the forced retirement, I was hoping for a vacation alone, traveling around the world with all the money I have earned. My plans were thwarted because of her insensible decision to drain off my whole savings for a stupid Tiffany lamp. In an impulse, I snapped.

Seeing her body laying lifelessly made me regain my senses. Like a bird released from a cage, I tasted freedom! She is dead, finally gone! No more spiteful words spearing through the ears, no more endless complaints, no more heavy chores, no more fierce insults and mostly, no more mother-in-law coming to tell her how to control her husband. I buried her body in the backyard that night and came up with the excuse that she decided to leave me for another man. My life was as perfect as the blue sky, until the police came knocking at my door.

It was a slight mistake which has caused me to lose my eternal freedom. If only I have realised she stored a hidden camera in the room and her incessant mother pursuing the case with the police, I could have savoured the perfect life longer. If only I had killed her mother as well. If only I could turn back the clock.

Pua Yu Min
Age 17
October 2009
SMK Damansara Jaya

Friday, May 8, 2009

Clumsy Mrs. Slim

Once upon a time, there was a woman whose name was Mrs. Slim. She lived with her husband in a little cottage with pretty flowers around it. Mrs. Slim was plump and clumsy, but her husband, Mr Plump, was slim and graceful.

One day, Mrs. Slim was doing the washing. "Scrub, scrub, scrub," went Mrs. Slim humming a song to herself. She was enjoying herself. But after awhile, Mrs. Slim began to feel sleepy. Soon, "Zzz...Zzz...Zzz.." Mrs. Slim was snoring loudly. She had already fallen asleep! As for the tap. there was water wooshing out of the sink. But poor Mrs. Slim knew nothing about it. Within minutes, the whole village was flooded with water. THe villagers shouted for help. Their shouts woke Mrs. Slim up.

She got up, yawned and stretched her arms. "What is going on?" asked Mrs. Slim, startled with the flood and the people screaming and shouting.

"Oh no! What have you done?" yelled Mr. Plump, reaching into the sink. "I've just gone out for awhile and you've managed to flood the entire village!" said Mr. Plump, almost hysterical.

"Oh fiddlesticks!" said Mrs. Slim.

Once, Mrs. Slim was watering the flowers. "Splish, splash, splosh," went Mrs Slim clumsily. When she finished watering, she saw a dreadful sight. THe flowers were smashed and the fences were flat. "Who did all these things?" muttered Mrs. Slim.

"You did! Clumsy woman! You did! Look what you've done?"shouted Mr. Plump, horrified.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to do that."

Another time, Mrs. Slim decided to do some gardening to make up for her clumsiness. After five minutes, Mrs Slim was sweating and panting because of the hot sun. She leaned against her cottage. With a loud CRASH, the cottage tumbled and was crashed to pieces. And for her poor husband, he was caught in the damaged cottage. Mrs. Slim was exasperated. She quickly pulled Mr. Plump out of the heap of pieces. Luckily, he was not badly injured. But, they had no home for shelter.

From that day on, they began to build another cottage which was ten times bigger than their old one. So, Mrs. Slim would not bring the house down again. And for the walls, they were made of solid bricks.

But one day, Mrs Slim accidentally knocked into the wall of her house. And... BANG! The house crased down again!

Lim Ee Wen
March 2009
11 years old

My Pet

I have a pet name Gubble. She is not a normal pet. She is a goblin. I found her in the ocean, when I was diving. I saw a shark about to eat her. So, I rescued the Goblin from the mean shark.

When I took her home, my neighbours said she was very cute. She was a very good goblin too. But, on the second birthday, she became naughty. She plucked all our flowers in the garden. She also ate up all our fish in the tank. When she was thirsty, she would go to the swimming pool and drink some water. Sometimes she would scare the people swimming in the pool. She often rummaged through the kitchen and made a mess.

One day, my father had an idea to teach her a lesson. My father sent her to military school for three months. After three months, she came back and turned the house into a military house. She made the whole family wake up at five o'clock and run around the neighbourhood. After that, she forced us to march back to our house. After having military breakfast, we had military class. Then we exercise and exercise and exercise some more. We were so extremely tired.

Then, I had an idea. My idea was to send her to Disneyland. After 3 months, she thought she was Tom, from the cartoon Tom and Jerry. So, she started to chase after my sister's hamster. My sister was very cross, so she spanked Gubble. The poor thing. Her bum was terribly red. She jumped up and down screaming, "Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!"

That night, my mother warned him, "If you continue to be naughty, I will send you back to the sea and let the shark eat you." From then on, she became good and nice. The End!

Vivian Chen
25 April 2009
8 years old

My Pet

I have a pet parrot called Googoo. He is a very cute and handsome parrot. I got the parrot from the jungle when I was going camping. While I was looking for some wood, I saw a parrot up in the tree. Then the parrot fell off the nest. He injured his wing.

I took it home and nursed it back to health. My cat chased after Googoo all over the house. Googoo's feathers fell off and became bald. He felt shy and ugly. My family and I saw Googoo and laughed at him.

My brother plucked the feathers from the feather duster and glued them onto Googoo. But Googoo looked like a chicken because the feather duster is made from chicken feathers. Then he started to cluck like a chicken.

Miss Lulu, my neighbour was so silly. She thought Googoo was a chicken and decided to catch Googoo to make chicken soup for dinner. Luckily my mother was able to rescue Googoo. My sister painted Googoo's feathers with colourful paint. Now Googoo looks like a real parrot.

Lee Xin Yi
SRK (C) Yuk Chai
18 April 2009
9 years old